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Top 3 Favorite Authors | Behind The Love Of Reading ︎ ︎ ︎

I really wanted to write a post to share with everyone what authors have reached my heart and the reasons for that. In an effort to keep things simple the list is narrowed down to the top three authors.

It was extremely difficult to pick only a few to share; however, it is easy for me to say these are the ones. The authors I am about to share with you have everything. The formula I came up with for why I love an author is a bit complicated and jammed packed.

The very first necessary components is likability. In order to appear on my favorite authors list, I must like the majority of the writer’s books. I have to feel confident that I will enjoy most anything they write. This is a big factor in my decision. Luckily, I am not very picky. If I like one thing an author writes then there is a good chance I will enjoy their other work. There are a lot of reasons behind what makes a story likable. In fact, it may be just too big of a topic to discuss in this post. Perhaps in a future one!

The second part of the formula is how much I can relate and enjoy the characters these authors have meticulously created. Most readers fall in love with a book because the emotions the characters make them feel. The emotions do not even need to always be uplifting either. They can include hate, anger, pity, shock. They are all good. Make me love or hate the characters of the story. As a reader I want to feel what they do. We all love books that make us feel that we are part of the story and connected. The best kind of story has characters that are easy to relate with. People I can understand.

The third component an author needs for me to consider them a favorite is the ability to create a good setting and build up. The characters can be wonderful but if there is not enough written to put me in their head then the point is rather mute. Writers that capture attention know how to create images in the minds of their readers. Having a good setting and characters is vital. Neither will work without the other. These are what make up my love of reading.

FAVORITE AUTHORS

These three authors are at the very top of a very steep favorite authors list. I hope you can enjoy their work as much as I have! Thank you for reading.

#1 V. C. Andrews

Andrews has always been my absolute number one favorite authors above anyone else. I have loved her since about the age of twelve or thirteen. She was the very first writer I could call a favorite. She was discovered a couple years after I became a bookworm in middle school. The series that caught my attention was Flowers In The Attic. I became a fan because these are the perfect books for a young woman. The characters are all young females who go through major drama and tragedies in their lives. The books written by Andrews are no fairy tales and I find them inspiring. There is a strength in the characters she writes. They never give up and overcome whatever is thrown at them. The woman she writes about all survive the hard knocks. Nothing is sugar-coated and the hits are always rolling. It really displays the realities of this crazy world with such a talent I could never hope to achieve. The most significant part of Andrews effect on me comes down to connections. The characters she wrote about are the first ones that truly hit home for me. I could empathize, cry, and laugh right along with the main character. These are stories I can reread forever and never be tired of it.

I also find the author’s personal history to be very inspiring in itself. V.C Andrews as a young woman was in a terrible car accident that left her paralyzed. She spent most of her adult years in a wheel chair but never let her personal tragedy prevent the stories she wrote so well.

Now I do apologize for what I am about to say next and I am certain that a reasonable amount V.C Andrews fans will agree with me. The most recent books are just not the same because they were not written by the author herself. V.C Andrew’s family hired ghostwriters to keep publishing in Andrew’s name upon her death in 1986. The difference is palpable. Below is a list of some of my favorite series written by Andrews.

Dean Koontz ranks number two on my list; however, I find it very difficult to find words to describe my feelings on this author. He is an amazing horror, suspense, science fiction author that has often been compared to the likes of Stephen King. In recent times it has been brought to my attention that a big group of readers feel he is too hyped and vastly over-rated. My feelings differ from this opinion greatly. I love Dean Koontz! The simple explanation is that the stories he writes not only keep me on the edge of my seat with literally every word but how significantly his stories immerse me.

Koontz’s very talented story telling is full of suspense. It is difficult to know what will happen next. He as an author has no problem getting real. The perfect hero and the wickedest villain can always be found in one of this author’s books.. Koontz’s writes enjoyable thrillers that touch on all things human. I have read many of his books including his best-selling series Odd Thomas. It would excruciatingly challenging to decide which book of his is my favorite.

Dean Koontz is an interesting character and long time author. He began writing under various pen names early in his career such as Aaron Wolfe, Brian Coffer, David Axton, Deanna Dwyer, John Hill, K.R. Dwyer, Leigh Nichols, Anthony North, Owen West, and Richard Paige. He married in 1966. Koontz’s wife supported him for five years when he began writing. The deal between the couple was that he had that much time to make his writing career take off. If things didn’t work out, then Koontz would get a job. Luckily, his writing was well received and through hard work everything worked out. Below is a list of my favorite books by this author.

#3 Mercedes Lackey

Now where on earth to start with Mercedes Lackey. She makes me giggle. She is one of the most adorable storytellers I have ever encountered. Lackey entertains my inner child and romantic side. My love for fairy-tales come vibrantly alive in the most unexpected ways in her books. The 500 kingdoms series takes every tale and the land of magic down a brand new path. Lackey is hands down one of the best fantasy genre writers I have ever read even outranking David Eddings, which is saying a lot coming from me. I love Eddings.

One of my most favorite parts about Lackey’s writing is the morals behind the story. As an author, she has made it her mission to show right and wrong in their truest forms. Painting a world of choices that have consequences. The bare truth, hilarious human nature, and pesky spirited tricksters is all just in a days work in a Mercedes Lackey novel. The entertainment proved endless.

Mercedes Lackey is an experienced author who has over a hundred and forty books to her credit averaging around five books per year since her 1972 graduation from Purdue University. She has often been named “one of the most prolific science fiction and fantasy writers of all time” according to Wikipedia.

Hello Samantha. I enjoyed your list/article re favourite writers very much. And I have to confess I haven’t read any of them – but I surely will now. Your article made me think about my own favourites – it will take me a while to work it out! I’m writing a series of Unforgettable Short Stories on my blog at the minute and perhaps, when I’m finished, I will do a series on favourite writers.
Thanks for your really interesting blog.

I LOVE Mercedes Lackey Books! 😀 Although I honestly haven’t read any in quite awhile (I read everything of hers that I could get my hands on a few years ago, then kind of fell away from her stuff because I’d read nearly everything she had published at that time).

What is your favorite V.C. Andrews series? Mine is the Flowers in the Attic series. (I stopped following V.C. Andrews works some years ago now, but before I did I read so many of her older series. So so so good.)

Interesting choices. I have enjoyed several of Dean Kootz’s novels. I read them many years ago. Was “The Watcher” the one with the intelligent dog in it?? I worried about that dog the whole time. No animal will ever be harmed in one of my stories!
I haven’t read “Flowers in the attic” but saw the film recently. Quite horrifying.

So my faves are: Jane Austin (I re-read Pride and Prejudice about every 5 years, so that’s at least 5 times). Margaret Atwood – anything by her – her prose is to die for; and Isabel Allende (same reason).

There are lots of others too… like Stephen King. I recently read his unedited version of The Stand. I could see why it’d been edited in some places, but again, awesomely written (the dog survived, but there was a nasty scene involving another animal…leave it at that). And the one thing I always remember that King said: ‘if you’re not enjoying a book, stop reading it. There are so many more’. As you say: ‘so many books, so little time’.

Yes Chris, The Watcher is the book with the intelligent dog. I loved that story! One of my favorite Dean Koontz novels. I am a fan of Atwood too but have not read Allende. I have been a King fan for a long time. He is a good writer but I think I enjoy reading Koontz more than his work. Yes Flowers In The Attic is horrifying and gets even worse in the other books! Thank you so much for such a thoughtful comment. I enjoyed reading it!

I remember reading V.C. Andrews when I was a teen, the Flowers in the Attic series. Mesmerizing! One of my favorite fantasy authors is Guy Gavriel Kay. I adore his early works. Other favorites are Alice Hoffman and Jane Austen.

Great article, I wholeheartedly agree with the first two, but I’ve never read anything by Mercedes Lackey so I’ll have to check them out. I have all of Stephen King’s books and my other favorite author would be Diana Gabaldon and her Outlander series.

No I haven’t. There is still a handful of his books I haven’t gotten to yet. Its been hard because im trying to break away from a bad habit of reading same books and authors over and over again. Been trying really hard this year to diversify and give other authors a chance to win my heart. So far been doing really well! But ahh favorites are favorites LOL ❤

I remember the Dollanganger series fondly – I think I read it in my teens, too. She was still publishing as Virginia Andrews then (yes, I’m showing my age 🙂 ). I also enjoy Mercedes Lackey. I’m not such a big fan of Koontz, but that’s more to my taste in horror than him as a writer. Good choices!

My very favourite author was Terry Pratchett, but there are so many I like almost as much that I couldn’t narrow it down to three. Well done for that.

I wish she was still around writing! Nobody could do what she did with her stories. Her writing was on a whole another level! And yes if your not a big horror suspense reading then dean koontz really isn’t going to hit you because that is what he writes best. We all have are personal taste and I totally get it!

Green Mile is good. Funny story for you. Have you seen the movie? You know the mouse in that movie. They came from my grandmothers rodent store. She has sold mutilple mouses, hamsters, and rats for film. I think that is kinda cool! Lol